Category Archives: Bike Gallery

Good things come to those who wait, and when you have tough requirements that can take a while. Tim knew exactly what he wanted in his family’s newest bike: big and sturdy enough to carry his 3 year old son, small enough to fit on a bus rack, with sizing to fit both his tall frame and his wife’s petite one. And he wanted to buy American. After detailed research he found the perfect bike: a midtail from Kinn Bikes of Portland, Oregon.

As the name suggests, midtail bicycles fit in the space between a standard bike and the extended-frame cargo bikes made popular by Xtracycle, aka “longtails.” While midtails can’t carry two kids as comfortably or carry as much cargo as longtails, many, like Tim’s Kinn Cascade Flyer, come with a twist: turn the front wheel 180 degrees and the bike length shortens by 4 inches, just enough to slide into a bus or train’s bike rack.

While the Kinn may have been perfect for Tim, his wife wasn’t so keen on its frame color and it was to be her bike too. Tim’s easy fix was having the frame re-painting and while they were at it, using Rhino Lining for a durable finish. Never heard of Rhino Lining? It’s a nubby coating that’s commonly sprayed on truck beds to protect from scrapes. Perfect for a bike that gets some abuse on the mean streets of San Francisco.

Rhino Liner was sprayed on before it was repainted in wife-approved green.

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For someone who lives over 10 miles from my office, I’m pretty lucky to have alternatives as a bike commuter. If I want a workout, I can take an hour or so to ride the whole way and shower on arrival, or I can combine a train ride with a five mile bike ride that lets me wear my work clothes. If bike-friendly transit weren’t available, I’ve always assumed I’d have to give up daily bike commuting, saving it for when I had time and energy to spare.

But now I know what I’d do. I’d get an e-bike, like Jenny did for her hilly commute. But instead of her sporty Specialized Turbo, I think I’d go for the pedal-assist Faraday Porteur I test rode at the Los Altos History Museum. Pedal-assist bikes look and feel like regular bikes, except for an extra boost of power that feels like you have a great tailwind or powerful stoker behind you. I could use that to fight the stiff headwinds on the bay.

And with the Faraday Porteur, you get clean classy lines like none other. No oversized tubing or clunky batteries attached here, and it has a traditional city bike look that’s just my style.

What looks like a battery pack is a actually a converter and a plug-in for the charger. Plus a built-in rear light.

The batteries are in the down tube. Earlier models stored them in the upper tube of the double top tubes.

Disc brakes provide extra stopping power, a great idea for wet days and commutes on hillier terrain.

On the left is a thumb switch for the electric boost. The right shifts the 8-speed internal hub.

Belt drive gives it a quiet ride and means no more greasy chain to keep away from your pants leg.

For all the advantages of e-bikes for longer, hillier commutes or for carrying heavy loads of kids or cargo, in many places e-bikes fall through the legal cracks. They’re not as bulky or powerfully speedy as scooters or even mopeds, but they aren’t strictly legal to ride on most paved bike trails that specify “non-motorized vehicles only.” But with a stealth-looking e-bike like the Faraday, no one may be the wiser.

What do you think of e-bikes? The League of American Bicyclists is studying the issues and would like to know. If you have five minutes to spare, please take this short survey today.

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What makes a bicycle a bicycle? Ask the Department of Motor Vehicles and it’s a device a person rides that’s propelled by human power through a system of belts, chains, or gears and has two or three wheels with at least one wheel bigger than 20 inches. Ask the UCI, racing cycling’s governing body and the answer for road bikes is much more specific, including weight limits (at least 15 pounds), and geometry requirements (triangle frame, equal sized wheels). It even has standards for saddle length (24-30 cm).

The designers of most bikes are not bound by UCI regulations, which makes the “Pedal Power: From Workhorse to Wacky” exhibit currently running at the Los Altos History Museum so intriguing. From penny farthings to recumbents, from wooden bikes to bamboo, from cruisers to folding bikes, to bikes too hard to describe, you’ll see them all. For the purists there are historic racing bikes from Greg Lemond that meet the UCI regulations, plus a variety of mountain bikes from the pioneer builders that screamed down Mt Tam.

The opening reception for the exhibit is next Sunday evening but I rushed to get there early. I had met one of the contributers at the Wine, Women & Chocolate party who asked if they could display one of my photos. I sent her a link to my Flickr photostream and she said she found one she liked for the display on town bikes. To my surprise, I found several more photos I took of family and friends in the “Wear What You Like… Go Where You Want” section, along with some lovely shots of Los Altos native Melissa of Bike Pretty.

I’ll have to go back for the opening reception, though. I spent so much time talking to Jan the exhibit’s designer about her options for buying a city bike that I didn’t get to read all the displays. Plus bike builder Craig Calfee will be there to talk about how bike designs have changed over time. If you’re on the San Francisco Bay Area, I’d love to meet you too. It’s Sunday, April 27 from 4-6 pm. Admission is free. (details).

The Pedal Power exhibit tells the history of bicycles, starting with a penny farthing with adjustable cranks.

The Swiss Army Bike may be vintage but its timeless design is still found in city bikes today.

This Cycle Gitane bike was the first bike Tour de France winner Greg Lemond rode after turning pro in 1981.

Not sure the wheels on this Tikit folding bike meet the DMV bike definition.

Beach cruiser bikes, like this one by Electra, set the standard for comfort.

Hey, look! That’s me and my Viva Juliett in the town bike description.

Female pioneers and the bicycle’s role in women’s liberation were duly noted.

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Some people covet them for the precise fit. Some have them built to perform a specialized task. Some seek the status of riding a one-of-a-kind item. For my husband Dick, treating himself to a custom built bike meant choosing exactly what he wanted like a kid in a candy store: frame material, tubing, joining method, geometry, paint scheme and application method, components and more. And of course, to fit him precisely.

I don’t know if Dick caught the custom bike bug at any of the North American Handmade Bike Shows we’ve attended over the years in San Jose, Austin and Sacramento, but it certainly hastened the symptoms. It’s no surprise. Dick has had a soft spot for lugged steel bikes since he bought his 1987 Bianchi Super Corsa with its flashy chrome lugs, and the NAHBS showcases some of the sexiest lugged steel bikes found anywhere.

With a generous offer from a close friend at Phil Wood, weeks of planning and painfully long months of waiting, the reward was sweet: a SyCip road frame built with Richard Sachs lugs, branded as Phil Wood & Co.

Dick set the bike up originally with a carbon fork, but switched to a custom steel fork made by Steelman Cycles, which he had chromed vintage-style by Superior Chrome in San Jose. That’s a lot of custom work by a lot of master craftsmen. But to Dick, the result is well worth it. It fits like a glove and rides like dream. His dream.

Rarely spotted in the wild: a Phil Wood head badge on a custom road bike.

Steel frame by SyCip with lugs by Richard Sachs in Eddy Merckx orange.

The steel fork by Steelman was chromed to retro perfection.

Ever since that first Bianchi, Dick has been Campy all the way.

Little details make the difference, like handpainted cutouts in the fork crown.

Unlike Brooks saddles, no break in was needed for his Sella Anatomica.

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When I saw this Soma Double Cross I did a double take, and not just because of its flashy orange accents. Soma designed the Double Cross for cyclocross racing, trail rides, commuting and light touring. That usually means drop bars and a rigid fork, so when I saw swept-back bars and a suspension fork I knew it was special.

As we pedaled from Caltrain to his office at San Jose’s Martin Luther King Library, Jon filled me in on his bike’s story. Born a traditional cyclocross-style commuter in 2006, its transformation began with when couple of broken spokes led to a bent rim and new wheels with bright orange rims. Why not add a little pizzazz?

From there it spiraled: a hard-to-find suspension fork for 700c wheels; bullhorn bars first, then swept-back bars with flame grips; downtube shifters; a springy new Brooks saddle for the more upright stance; a cable to secure the saddle; bright orange Ortlieb panniers and a helmet to match. No need for a high-viz jacket here.

And no need for Jon to hold back on making his Soma Double Cross his own. What customizations have you made to your commuter bike? Did you make them all at once or did your bike’s style evolve over time?

Hey look, down tube shifters on a non-vintage bike! Slick.

Mountain bike gearing to climb any hill San Francisco can throw at him.

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Jessica’s grandfather must be proud of her. A German immigrant who made his living as a cabinet maker, he knows the satisfaction of sawing, nailing and sanding to build something practical and attractive using his own two hands. I know I was impressed by the cargo crate she built for her trike. It seems the basket that came with her trike didn’t meet the standards of a craftsman’s granddaughter so she hand-built herself a new one.

Jessica built the custom crate because the original basket wasn’t big enough or sturdy enough for everything she wanted to carry, like groceries, gardening supplies, and most importantly hay and feed for her bunnies.

Jessica designed the cargo crate and built it herself using only hand tools.

A old-fashioned squeeze bugle horn completes the ensemble.

Bag of feed and a bag of hay with plenty of room to spare.

Jessica’s bunnies may not ride on the trike, but they love what it brings.

Flinch will gladly pose for the camera to munch on some tasty carrots.

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I’m not a mom. Unlike Cherie and other parents I’ve been chatting with lately, I don’t have kids that I need to drop off at school in the morning, or to take to soccer practice, swim lessons or dance class in the afternoon. And yet I find cargo and family bikes intriguing, like this Urban Arrow I spotted parked in downtown Palo Alto.

At first glance it looks like just another variation on the traditional Dutch bakfiets (box bike), this time with a hard foam box instead of wood. A closer look reveals much more: a factory electric assist motor. That sounds like a winning combination to me. After all, not all parents are like the unstoppable Emily Finch of Portland, who’s determined enough to carry her six kids and way to much cargo on her box bike.

The Urban Arrow looks long, but it’s about the same length as a traditional bakfiets. The passenger box can be replaced with a cargo box, or the box section can be replaced with a new front end to form a standard bike.

The passenger box is made from the same high-density foam found in bike helmets.

Like any proper European bike, the Urban Arrow has integrated lights.

The electric motor sits right behind the pedals for stability.

Oops. This isn’t a chain guard. I took photo of wrong side of the bike so no idea whether it’s chain or belt driven.

A classic Brooks saddle adds a classic touch to a modern design.

A generated rear light and lots of reflectors make an impression going as well as coming.

Nearly 32,000 Americans die in car crashes annually. 80% of car crashes are PREVENTABLE. If the TOASTER was killing that many people we'd think it was ridiculous. We'd un-plug it and say, let's Fix The Toaster.